NWP 21. More polar bears

4-Sept-24 Dundas Harbour

Clocks move forward again. Another hour lost.

Morning brew whilst watching snow capped mountains and icebergs drift by. Scenery at last. Big difference with Arctic tundra the past few weeks.

Scenic cruising into Croker Bay on the southern side of Devon Island. Glorious blue sky. Sun shining on snow. Four days of shore excursions had to be cancelled last year due to weather. So. Very lucky.

Croker Bay is the furthest north of the trip at about 74.7deg N. And the furthest north I have been. So far. North Pole anyone?

About a 4 mile wide inlet leading to two glaciers. Rock rears up vertically from the sea with amazing regular rock formations at the top. Falling scree forms a protective shield around the shore line. Amazing sight as we cruise into the 20 mile long fjord.

And then.

Polar bear spotted. What must be 2 miles away. A creamy speck. Against a brown scree. Only with a 1400mm zoom can I pick it out.

And then.

Another polar bear spotted. The other side. Must be three or four miles away. Too far for a decent photo. But it’s there. Trust me.

And then.

Another polar spotted. Two to three miles away. There is no sense of scale. By the shoreline. Sunbathing. Then looks at us. Thinking. Clear off.

Prior to this trip had been debating with myself whether to buy a new camera and long lens for polar bear photos. Mentally trying to do the man maths to justify spending £6,000 odd quid. Others clearly have and a plethora of snazzy cameras and long lens 400mm, 500mm, 600mm and converters to double it.

Instead. Bought a relatively cheap Canon SX70 bridge camera for £500 with 1400mm zoom.

Oh boy. So glad I did.

The long lenses are good for short and medium distances. But not miles. Looking at images taken with fancy kit decide I made a wise decision not to spend £6,000. Images on my cheaper camera are as good if not better. As zoom is better.

As you will see in the photos below. Photo of people on deck is what you see with naked eye. The next photo of polar bear is what my camera zoom did at two to three miles away. I’m sure you’ll agree that’s an impressive zoom.

Two glaciers (about 2km wide each) at the end of Croker Bay calve their babies into the sea which then float down into Lancaster Sound and either into the North West Passage network of channels or out in to Baffin Bay. Depending on currents.

Discover a sweet spot on deck where the wind is minimal. A few steps from there and it blows a gale.

Around the corner from Croker Bay is Dundas Harbour. Former Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) settlement set up in 1924 to reinforce the Canadian presence and prevent foreign whalers coming into the region.

Wind has dropped. Sun shines. Blue sky. Zodiac cruise around the headland. Have discovered a little trick. Rather than putting on polar gear in hot cabin. Go to the holding area by the Zodiac gantry. Cool Arctic air perfect for dressing in polar gear without sweating buckets in hot cabin. Arrive early to faff to put gear on. Zodiac crew are after one person to fill Zodiac. That be me. Jump in boat. It’s ze German boat. Clearly not meant to be there judging by their looks. All set in certain groups to adhere to. Explain they wanted one person. Fortunately Zodiac pilot is one of the Expedition Crew. She’s French. She speaks no German. So the ‘tour’ is in English. Ze Germans can speak English. Apart from one. We’ll call him…Walter…(Bloss…really?!?!). He speaks no English. He’s the sort to walk around ship in tracksuit bottoms and sandals. With socks. But with formal shirt tucked neatly in tracky bottoms. If they look odd. They usually are.

At the end of the Zodiac cruise around icebergs and the headland we’re due to go back on board for about 1hr. Then go out again to visit the settlement at Dundas Harbour. Ze Germans want to go now. To save time and faff.

Walter becomes quite animated. And in German vociferously mounts an argument for going now. Too much faff going on board. Taking off all the polar gear. Wait a bit. Put all polar gear back on again. Board Zodiac. Again.

Sensing a whiff of mutiny. Egg ze Germans on. And persuade pilot to radio ship to say we want to go to land now.

Tell Walter I agree with him. My new best friend. And again becomes more animated. Releasing a lot of frustration by the sounds of it. Frustration with life. One suspects. You know the type.

But. It’s not allowed. Too many on land at the moment. So back on board. No sooner have I undressed polar gear. Then it’s time to put it all on again as the landings are ahead of schedule.

Get on an earlier boat again as close to the landing gantry getting dressed and one person required. Arrive on shore half an hour earlier than expected.

A collection of about four wooden huts. One blown over and sitting on its roof. Force of wind. Not much to see. Collection of people populate the beach at one end. Waiting for a beluga whale to pop up. Surprised the outboard motors haven’t scared it away.

Up on the hillside is a small cemetery with graves from 1926/27. One committed suicide. Hardly surprising given how utterly remote it is. Canadians imported a couple of Inuit families to try and build up the settlement but it was eventually taken over by the Hudson Bay Co in 1933. Before being abandoned altogether in 1951. Another remnant of a historic past in the Arctic.

Superb evening as we Zodiac back to ship. In time for. A. Hot shower. B. Relaxing Dinner. C. Beer. D. Wine. Ah yes. My little ploy to get on earlier Zodiacs has worked. My schedule meant it was to be another early dinner. Don’t do early dinners. That’s for old folk.

Except. Very nearly disappeared.

Disembarking Zodiac. Crewman steps on board. Puts wooden box on Zodiac floor. Sailor’s grip on him. A hand to wrist grab. Step one on box. Step two on Zodiac rubber side. Sailor’s grip on crewman on gantry. Release sailor’s grip on crewman on Zodiac. Step three on to gantry.

Works well.

Except.

At the point of stepping on Zodiac’s rubber side and then stepping on gantry. So. One foot on Zodiac. One foot on ship. Zodiac side drops about one metre in the swell. Not helped by the point load of my mass now entirely on the side of Zodiac.

You can imagine my surprise when I plunge down.

You can also imagine the surprise of the little Philippine crewman I’m hanging on to.

As soon as the Zodiac plunges down. It bounces up on the swell.

And I step off on to the gantry.

All Jack Sparrow like as his ship sinks. At the start of Pirates of the Caribbean.

Cool. Calm. Collected.

A narrow escape.